scholarly journals Speech-language assessment in a linguistically diverse setting: Preliminary exploration of the possible impact of informal ‘solutions’ within the South African context

2012 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne Barratt ◽  
Katijah Khoza-Shangase ◽  
Kwandinjabulo Msimang
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
First Language ◽  
Linguistically Diverse ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
African Context ◽  
Diverse Setting ◽  
Communication Impairments

Speech-language therapists (SLTs) working in the context of cultural and linguistic diversity face considerable challenges in providing equitable services to all clients. This is complicated by the fact that the majority of SLTs in South Africa are English or Afrikaans speakers, while the majority of the population have a home language other than English/Afrikaans. Consequently, SLTs are often forced to call on untrained personnel to act as interpreters or translators, and to utilise informally translated materials in the assessment and management of clients with communication impairments. However, variations in translation have the potential to considerably alter intervention plans. This study explored whether the linguistic complexity conveyed in translation of the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) test changed when translated from English to isiZulu by five different first-language IsiZulu speakers. A qualitative comparative research design was adopted and results were analysed using comparative data analysis. Results revealed notable differences in the translations, with most differences relating to vocabulary and semantics. This finding holds clinical implications for the use of informal translators as well as for the utilisation of translated material in the provision of speech-language therapy services in multilingual contexts. This study highlights the need for cautious use of translators and/or translated materials that are not appropriately and systematically adapted for local usage. Further recommendations include a call for intensified efforts in the transformation of the profession within the country, specifically by attracting greater numbers of students who are fluent in African languages.

scholarly journals New graduates’ perceptions of preparedness to provide speech-language therapy services in general and dysphagia services in particular

2015 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shajila Singh ◽  
Alannah Booth ◽  
Fadziso Choto ◽  
Jessica Gotlieb ◽  
Rebecca Robertson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Clinical Learning ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
African Languages ◽  
New Graduates ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Management Of Dysphagia

Background: Upon graduation, newly qualified speech-language therapists are expected to provide services independently. This study describes new graduates’ perceptions of their preparedness to provide services across the scope of the profession and explores associations between perceptions of dysphagia theory and clinical learning curricula with preparedness for adult and paediatric dysphagia service delivery.Methods: New graduates of six South African universities were recruited to participate in a survey by completing an electronic questionnaire exploring their perceptions of the dysphagia curricula and their preparedness to practise across the scope of the profession of speechlanguage therapy. Results: Eighty graduates participated in the study yielding a response rate of 63.49%. Participants perceived themselves to be well prepared in some areas (e.g. child language: 100%; articulation and phonology: 97.26%), but less prepared in other areas (e.g. adult dysphagia: 50.70%; paediatric dysarthria: 46.58%; paediatric dysphagia: 38.36%) and most unprepared to provide services requiring sign language (23.61%) and African languages (20.55%). There was a significant relationship between perceptions of adequate theory and clinical learning opportunities with assessment and management of dysphagia and perceptions of preparedness to provide dysphagia services. Conclusion: There is a need for review of existing curricula and consideration of developing a standard speech-language therapy curriculum across universities, particularly in service provision to a multilingual population, and in both the theory and clinical learning of the assessment and management of adult and paediatric dysphagia, to better equip graduates for practice.

scholarly journals Die Evaluering Van ‘N Eentalige Toelatingstoets Wat Vir Toelating Tot Hoër Onderwys In ’N Veeltalige Konteks Gebruik Word

2007 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elize Koch
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
South African ◽  
First Language ◽  
Item Bias ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Admissions Test ◽  
English Second Language ◽  
Structural Differences ◽  
African Context ◽  
English Students

The evaluation of monolingual admissions test used for admission to higher education in a plurilingual context. This study aims to critically evaluate the practice to use monolingual admissions tests across diverse language groups. The specific aim of the study was, accordingly, to evaluate the bias, across language groups, of a reading comprehension test used for admission to higher education. The subsequent aim was to decide about the scalar equivalence of the test across three language groups, namely Afrikaans and English students and students who are first language speakers of an African language. Item bias and structural differences between the English first and English second language groups were found, while structural differences continued to be found after deleting the DIF items from the test. Implications for fair admissions testing in the South African context are discussed. Opsomming: Hierdie stukkie het dit ten doel om die praktyk om eentalige toelatingstoetse oor taalgroepe heen te gebruik, krities te evalueer. Die oogmerk van die studie was gevolglik om ’n toets van leesbegrip wat vir toelating tot universiteit gebruik word en wat slegs in Engels beskikbaar is, te evalueer vir sydigheid. Die uiteindelike oogmerk was om oor die skaalekwivalensie van die toets ten opsigte van drie taalgroepe te besluit, naamlik Afrikaanse en Engelse studente en studente met ’n Afrika taal as eerste taal. Item sydigheid en strukturele verskille tussen Engels eerstetaal sprekers en Engels tweedetaal sprekers is gevind, terwyl strukturele verskille na die verwydering van die DIF items voorgeduur het. Implikasies vir billike toelatingstoetsing in Suid-Afrika word bespreek.

scholarly journals Vocabulary used by ethno-linguistically diverse South African toddlers: A parent report using the Language Development Survey

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurellia Shamaleni Gonasillan ◽  
Juan Bornman ◽  
Michal Harty
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Language Development ◽  
South African ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Linguistically Diverse ◽  
Parent Report ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Expressive Vocabulary ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
African Context

Objective: The primary aim of this study was to ascertain the relevance of the vocabulary of the Language Development Survey (LDS) for typically developing South African toddlers who attend ethno-linguistically diverse early childhood development centres.Rationale: The need for exploration of the expressive vocabulary of this population stems from the diverse linguistic contexts to which toddlers are exposed on a day-to-day basis in South Africa. Many parents prefer English as the language of learning and teaching for their child. As a result, toddlers interact with ethno-linguistically diverse peers from a young age, usually within their early childhood development centres.Method: An adapted version of the LDS was presented to 40 middle-class parents in Mpumalanga. Vocabulary commonly used by toddlers was determined and a comparison of parent responses made between the present study and the original American-based survey.Results: Results revealed that nouns were used most often by toddlers, in keeping with research on vocabulary acquisition. Significant correlations between the two groups were evident in 12 of the 14 categories. Parents reported that nouns, verbs, adjectives and words from other word classes were used similarly by toddlers, despite differences in their linguistic exposure.Conclusions: These findings suggest that the LDS is a valuable clinical screening tool for speech-language therapists who deliver services to toddlers within the South African context.

scholarly journals Identifying phonological processing deficits in Northern Sotho-speaking children: The use of non-word repetition as a language assessment tool in the South African context

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carien Wilsenach
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Language Assessment ◽  
South African Context ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Word Repetition ◽  
Northern Sotho ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
African Context

Diagnostic testing of speech/language skills in the African languages spoken in South Africa is a challenging task, as standardised language tests in the official languages of South Africa barely exist. Commercially available language tests are in English, and have been standardised in other parts of the world. Such tests are often translated into African languages, a practice that speech language therapists deem linguistically and culturally inappropriate. In response to the need for developing clinical language assessment instruments that could be used in South Africa, this article reports on data collected with a Northern Sotho non-word repetition task (NRT). Non-word repetition measures various aspects of phonological processing, including phonological working memory (PWM), and is used widely by speech language therapists, linguists, and educational psychologists in the Western world. The design of a novel Northern Sotho NRT is described, and it is argued that the task could be used successfully in the South African context to discriminate between children with weak and strong Northern Sotho phonological processing ability, regardless of the language of learning and teaching. The NRT was piloted with 120 third graders, and showed moderate to strong correlations with other measures of PWM, such as digit span and English non-word repetition. Furthermore, the task was positively associated with both word and fluent reading in Northern Sotho, and it reliably predicted reading outcomes in the tested population. Suggestions are made for improving the current version of the Northern Sotho NRT, whereafter it should be suitable to test learners from various age groups.

Development and initial validation of productive vocabulary tests for isiZulu, Siswati and English in South Africa

2022 ◽  
pp. 026553222110637
Author(s):  
Carien Wilsenach ◽  
Maxine Schaefer
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Oral Language ◽  
First Language ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Initial Validation ◽  
African Context ◽  
Oral Language Skills ◽  
Early Primary ◽  
The Cost

Multilingualism in education is encouraged in South Africa, and children are expected to become bilingual and biliterate during the early primary grades. Much focus has been placed on measuring literacy in children’s first language, often the medium of instruction (MOI), and English, the language typically used as MOI from fourth grade. However, vocabulary development in African contexts is underexplored, owing to the cost of existing English standardized tests, and the comparatively fewer linguistically and contextually appropriate vocabulary assessments in African languages. To address this gap, we document the development of corpus-informed contextually appropriate tests of productive vocabulary in isiZulu, Siswati, and English, which were used for a project evaluation. The initial validation phase included 412 children. Both tests were reliable and were concurrently validated with reading comprehension tests in each language, and oral language skills in English. This study contributes to our understanding of the factors that affect the variation in vocabulary knowledge in an African context, including age, grade repetition, and vocabulary in the other language. Only English vocabulary was affected by the remote rural location of the school. We recommend some modifications to the tests before they are validated further in other populations.

scholarly journals Speech-language therapy for adolescents with written-language difficulties: The South African context

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Danel Erasmus ◽  
Leani Schutte ◽  
Melissa Van der Merwe ◽  
Salomé Geertsema
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Population Group ◽  
Written Language ◽  
Assessment Tools ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
The South ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
Self Study ◽  
Language Difficulties ◽  
African Context

Objective: To investigate whether privately practising speech-language therapists in South Africa are fulfilling their role of identification, assessment and intervention for adolescents with written-language and reading difficulties. Further needs concerning training with regard to this population group were also determined.Method: A survey study was conducted, using a self-administered questionnaire. Twenty-two currently practising speech-language therapists who are registered members of the South African Speech-Language-Hearing Association (SASLHA) participated in the study.Results: The respondents indicated that they are aware of their role regarding adolescents with written-language difficulties. However, they feel that South-African speech-language therapists are not fulfilling this role. Existing assessment tools and interventions for written-language difficulties are described as inadequate, and culturally and age inappropriate. Yet, the majority of the respondents feel that they are adequately equipped to work with adolescents with written-language difficulties, based on their own experience, self-study and secondary training. The respondents feel that training regarding effective collaboration with teachers is necessary to establish specific roles, and to promote speech-language therapy for adolescents among teachers.Conclusion: Further research is needed in developing appropriate assessment and intervention tools as well as improvement of training at an undergraduate level.

scholarly journals Out with old, in with the new: Negotiating identity in re-naming a Xhosa umtshakazi

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-76
Author(s):  
Evangeline Bonisiwe Zungu ◽  
Nomvula Maphini
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Religious Practice ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Gender Culture ◽  
The World ◽  
African Context ◽  
Newly Married ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Key Words Gender ◽  
People’S Perceptions

Umtshakazi (singular) is a bride and abatshakazi (plural) are brides in  isiXhosa language. The word is derived from the word ‘tsha’ which means new in isiXhosa. The word is popularly known as Makoti in other African languages, such as isiZulu. In short, a bride is a woman about to be married or newly married and thus a “new member” of the husband’s family. In a South African context, naming is not reserved for new-born children as there are circumstances whereby older people get new names. In Xhosa re-naming of abatshakazi, is a religious practice where name-givers bestow a name on a newlywed and then expect brides to live up to their newly acquired names. Like most things cultural, the brides  have no choice but to accept the  new name, embrace what the name entails and live up to the family’s expectations. Through the re-naming process the bride assumes a new identity which means taking the responsibility that comes with it. This article examines how such a process gives brides new roles to play; how brides make a conscious effort to live up to the name and how this changes their identity. This article is going to take a phenomenology stance. The phenomenology theory is a theoretical proposition which focuses on people’s perceptions of the world in which they live and what it means to them. It focuses on people’s lived experiences. This theory is essential in this article as the article focuses on the individual experiences of Xhosa  abatshakazi in the naming process. Key Words: gender, culture, names, identity, marriage

scholarly journals BREAKING THE LANGUAGE BARRIER IN LEGAL EDUCATION: A METHOD FOR AFRICANISING LEGAL EDUCATION

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thokozani Dladla
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
First Language ◽  
Legal Education ◽  
African Language ◽  
Law Schools ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Chief Justice ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Republic

Section 6 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 recognises eleven official languages of the Republic and further requires the State to take practical steps to advance the use of African languages. The Statistics South Africa 2017/18 report shows that most South Africans’ first language are African languages. Despite this reality and the constitutional imperatives, the South African Bachelor of Laws (LLB) curriculum does not prescribe any African language as a compulsory course, and very few sources of law are in an African language. Some law schools do offer some African languages as an elective. However, it is submitted that this is not sufficient. Experience has shown that the inability to articulate oneself in English can be a barrier to completing the LLB degree in regulation-time and admission to legal practice. Furthermore, it is submitted that the Chief Justice 2017 Directive, in which Chief Justice Mogoeng declared English as the only language of record in South African courts, does not address the language problems experienced by court staff. Instead it simply perpetuates the Eurocentric legal system. This is because it counters the advancement and use of African languages envisaged by the Constitution. This article investigates how the failure to advance multilingualism in the current LLB curriculum can disadvantage law students going to practice. It is proposed that law schools begin to address this issue by introducing two innovations. First, it is suggested that law schools make at least one African language a compulsory course. For English first language speakers in particular, this arrangement will strengthen their understanding of the sociological context in which the law operates. Second, it is proposed that each law school should choose an African language that is predominantly spoken in their geographical area and partner with schools of languages to translate sources of law. For African first language speakers in particular, this will assist them in understanding legal concepts better. Translations of legal texts may also allow for law schools to teach the law in the local African language.

Failure to launch: matching language policy with literacy accomplishment in South African schools

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 (234) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Pretorius
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
South African ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
Reading Levels ◽  
African Languages ◽  
English Reading ◽  
Early Schooling ◽  
African Context

AbstractThis article argues that the education crisis in South Africa stems largely from a literacy problem. The prediction that use of the primary language is beneficial in formal schooling is not unambiguously met in the South African context when examining evidence from large-scale literacy assessments. Understanding the reasons for this is critical for improving the use of African languages in early schooling. This article examines the Zulu and English reading literacy skills of a Grade 4 cohort of learners after three years of schooling in their home language. The research reveals low reading levels in both languages, suggesting a mismatch between language policy and literacy accomplishment. It is suggested that one of the primary reasons for the poor results in schools that have African languages as initial LoLT lies in the oral orientation to classroom practices in these schools. A more fully specified language in education model is proposed where an emphasis on

Providing School-Based Speech-Language Therapy Services by Telepractice: A Brief Tutorial

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Grogan-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Public School ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
School Setting ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
The Public ◽  
School Based ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Communication Impairments

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are increasingly turning to technologies such as the Internet and videoconferencing for service provision (Dudding & Justice, 2004). Many school-based SLPs are recognizing the potential applications of telepractice for students with communication impairments, but may be uncertain about how to put telepractice into action. The purpose of this article is to describe one approach to implementing telepractice in the public school setting.

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